{Second Time Brides Review} The Secondhand Earl by Sky Purington

The Secondhand Earl by Sky Purington
Series: Second Time Brides #2
Published by Dragonblade Publishing on September 26th, 2023
Genres: Fiction, Adult, Romance, Historical
Pages: 151
Format: eBook
Source: Netgalley
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What happens when a lady loses her heart to a tortured earl with a damning secret?

Lady Grace Howard and her ailing son have no choice but to move in with her sister Maude and her husband. Although welcome, she is too prideful to remain with them overly long. So when she crosses paths with a cynical war-wounded earl who needs her dowry but loathes the idea of falling in love again as much as she, Grace agrees to a marriage of convenience. Little does she know there is more to the bargain. Something she would not have liked one bit.

While Charles, Lord of Newcastle, needs Grace’s dowry, the business her brother-by-marriage brings to his port is the driving force behind marrying her. It’s something she must not know about, lest her pride land her in the arms of the wrong suitor. Despite preferring honesty, he agrees without understanding how much hiding the truth might cost him. But then, he could not anticipate how fond of each other they would become. How much they would help heal one another’s hearts. Moreover, he could have never foreseen passion—let alone love—igniting between them. Now his secret will likely become a damning truth.

Will Charles and Grace be able to weather the storm when it comes? Or is their marriage doomed to be as superficial as initially intended?

I received The Secondhand Earl for free. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Lady Grace Howard and her asthmatic son have been saddled with debt after the death of her gambler husband. They end up moving north to live with one of her sisters and brother-in-law. Due to her immense pride, Grace realizes she must remarry. What she doesn’t know is the man lucky enough to win her hand will get handsome dowery from her brother-in-law and help with their business.

Charles, the Earl of Newcastle, lost his wife and child during labor. He threw himself into the war and came back even more damaged in body as in spirit. He never wanted to remarry, but his estate was in dire straights due to the neglect his men of business created. He doesn’t want to go into another marriage with any lies between them and is convinced not to tell Grace about everything until after they marry.

As the two get to know each other the month and a half between their meeting and their wedding date, they slowly begin to form a bond that brings friendship and attraction.

While this is the second in this series it can be read as a stand alone. I have no idea how, but this is my first read of Sky Purington. With the number of books she’s written, I have no idea how I missed her. This was a fantastic novel to start with. Grace and Charles both have beautiful yet tragic back stories. They believed they experienced their one love and couldn’t share that with anyone again. Purington brings two unconventional characters together and gives us a love story for the ages. The power a true connection can bring to a relationship is perfectly demonstrated throughout this novel. This novel will definitely go in my re-read pile for me to enjoy over and over again.

If you’d like to start the series with Grace’s sister, Prudence, and her second chance groom, Jacob, the Duke of Argyll, check out Never Second Guess a Lord.